No evidence of mechanical failure in LAM Mozambique E-190 crash

Preliminary investigations into the LAM Mozambique Embraer E-190 crash on Nov. 29 have not revealed any evidence of mechanical failure.

The aircraft, which was carrying 27 passengers and six crew,
crashed
during a scheduled flight from Maputo to Luanda on Nov. 29
killing all onboard. The wreckage was found
Nov. 30 in a remote part of northern Namibia.

In his preliminary report, Captain Ericksson Nengola from the Namibian transport ministry said good progress has been made during the investigation, aided by the cockpit voice and flight data recorders, which survived the “tremendous impact” of the crash.

Early findings show the E-190, operating as flight TM470, crashed at around 1300 local time in the Kavango region, which is located in the far north of Nambia bordering Angola and Botswana.

“The cockpit voice and flight data recorders showed no evidence of mechanical failure,” Nengola said in a statement. He added the investigation is still ongoing and the full preliminary report will be issued within 30 days of the accident, which falls just before New Year.

Mozambique CAA Instituto de Aviacao Civil de Mocambique (IACM) president Joao Martins de Abreu said the flight data and cockpit voice recorders have been sent to the US for reading and decoding.

Both LAM Mozambique and Embraer declined to comment, pending results of the investigation.

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